FDI in retail will benefit farmers, says 'confident' PM

A day after winning Parliament's approval to the decision of allowing FDI in retail, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday said the move will benefit farmers and consumers and help introduce new technologies in agri-marketing. 

http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/Punjab/FDI-in-retail-will-benefit-farmers-says-confident-PM/Article1-970127.aspx

2G auction flop show: Where are those Rs 1.76 lakh crore?

NEW DELHI: Attributing "sensationalism" over the CAG's presumptive loss figure of Rs 1.76 lakh crore for the "killing" of the telecom sector, government today said it plans to auction by March-end the circles that were not taken in the flopped sale of mobile phone spectrum this week. 


http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/2G-auction-flop-show-Where-are-those-Rs-1-76-lakh-crore-Kapil-Sibal-asks/articleshow/17242881.cms

Sonia Gandhi meets PM, top Congress leaders to discuss Mamata Banerjee's withdrawal of support

New Delhi: The Congress-led UPA government is in a minority and its immediate task is to ensure survival. It has been forced to scrounge for numbers by ally Mamata Banerjee, who announced yesterday that she was exiting the UPA government in protest against a menu of new reforms introduced last week. For months now, the Manmohan Singh government's plan B has been the support of Mulayam Singh Yadav or Mayawati to offset the loss of Mamata. It is time now to see if that plan works.   

http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/sonia-gandhi-meets-pm-top-congress-leaders-to-discuss-mamata-banerjee-s-withdrawal-of-support-269173

Coal-gate: Govt rules out cancelling all coal blocks in auditor's (CAG) report

New Delhi: The Prime Minister has reportedly told his ministers that he will not sanction the cancellation of 142 coal blocks listed by the national auditor for being sold at a fraction of their true market rate to private and state-run firms. 

Consumer confidence falls first time in 9 quarters:Nielsen

Consumer confidence in the country declined for the first time in nine quarters due to a fall in employment sentiment and subdued spending behaviour, according to the latest edition of the Nielsen global consumer confidence index released in Mumbai on Tuesday.


http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_consumer-confidence-falls-first-time-in-9-quarters-nielsen_1716088

Sensex tumbles 244 pts as RBI keeps rates untouched

Mumbai: In a highly volatile trade, the Sensex Monday tumbled 244 points as RBI unexpectedly kept lending rates unchanged sparking off hectic selling, especially in interest-sensitive stocks banks, realty and auto.

Facebook IPO Said to Get Weaker-Than-Forecast Demand-

Facebook Inc’s initial public offering has so far generated lower-than-expected demand from institutional investors who are concerned about the company’s growth prospects, people with knowledge of the matter said.

Black money: Snoop agencies report real estate as top violator

NEW DELHI: Economic intelligence agencies have informed the Finance Ministry that a major chunk of illegal funds and black money is being generated and routed in the real estate sector of the country. 

India to lose the 'I' in BRICS????

New Delhi: Indian babus tried to persuade S&P men to raise its rating , but were rudely shocked at what transpired thereafter.

Standard & Poor's (S&P) credit analyst Takahira Ogawa listened politely as Indian govt officials at the finance ministry made an hour-long pitch for a ratings upgrade, citing economic growth prospects, revenues and their efforts to contain the government's fiscal deficit.

Massive 8.7 quake hits off Indonesia-Tsunami fear

The Indonesian president said on Wednesday there was no immediate threat of a tsunami from an 8.6-magnitude earthquake that struck off Sumatra island.

Indonesia has issued its own tsunami warning and an Indian Ocean-wide alert was also issued after the quake, but President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said there was no immediate threat.

Indian Jewelers Call Off Strike.

NEW DELHI—India's gold-jewelry trade associations agreed Friday to call off a 20-day strike, after Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee promised to look into rollbacks on newly implemented gold taxes.

Indian retailers have been protesting measures, effective March 16, that doubled the import tax on gold to 4% and imposed excise taxes on most gold jewelry. Earlier, the excise tax was applicable only on gold jewelry sold by large, private companies.Imports by India, the world's top consumer of gold, have nearly stopped due to the strike, impacting global prices.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303302504577327283295554276.html

Gold fall to 12-Week low as Fed stimulus stance lifts dollar

New York: Gold on Wednesday dropped to a 12- week low by losing 2.6 percent as the dollar strengthened on signs the Federal Reserve may refrain from providing more monetary stimulus for the US.

The gold fell by 2.6 percent to USD 1,628.10 an ounce, after touching USD 1,621.50, the lowest since January 10.

Silver also fell by 4.1 percent to USD 31.90 an ounce, the biggest drop since March 14.

Positive outlook for India's job market: Survey

The next three months are likely to offer solid opportunities for job seekers as 39 per cent of Indian employers are expected to increase their headcount, says a survey.

According to the survey by recruitment tendering platform MyHiringClub.com, the country's net employment outlook – an indicator of recruitment intentions -- stood at a healthy 39 per cent, reflecting solid opportunities for job seekers in the upcoming quarter.

BRICS boost foreign aid spending on health

Some of the so-called BRICS countries, which include Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, have traditionally received aid, but fast economic growth over the past decade is turning them into new donors to the world's poor.

Sensex in free fall as UPA-II faces another crisis

Top ten stories of the day 22-03-2012

1) Coal field allocation under scanner; a new scam on anvil?

2) Markets tank; Sensex plunges 400 points

3) China manufacturing disappoints; world markets down

4) Oil falls $1 a barrel, headed for biggest drop in 10 weeks

5) NBCC IPO, the last govt listing for the fiscal year, opens today

MOre @  NDTV

Will do the same again if I get a chance: Dinesh Trivedi

NEW DELHI: His proposal for hiking passenger fare led to his ouster as railway minister but TMC MP Dinesh Trivedi today said he would do it again if given an opportunity, soon after his successor announced a rollback. "I will present the same budget which I presented in parliament on March 14, if I am asked to do it again," Trivedi said when asked about the decision by Railway Minister Mukul Roy to roll back the fare hike. 


TOI

Navroz Mubarak

On the happy occasion of Navroz Mubarak, I wish all Happy New year ,

With lots of Prayers

Padaniya family

Don't mind losing my job, says Trivedi after Mamata rejects rail fare hike

Strongly opposing the hike in rail passenger fare, Trinamool Congress on Wednesday demanded a roll-back. A team of Trinamool Congress MPs met Railway Minister and party colleague Dinesh Trivedi soon after he presented the Railway Budget in which he proposed to hike fares across all classes.Minister of State for Health Sudip Bandopadhyay said that the TMC MPs asked the Railway Minister to roll-back the fare hike.

Now, book your Rail ticket 120 days in advance.

New Delhi: Indian Railways’ new advance ticket booking rules came into force on Saturday. Under the new rule, you can book your rail ticket 120 days in advance.

Don't hire workers from India, China: Obama to US firms

President Barack Obama has said that he does not want US companies to look for skilled and educated workers in India and China in fields like engineering, technology and science.

To prevent that, Obama said, he wants to give the school and teachers the resources they need to train and educated students in the US.

http://profit.ndtv.com/News/Article/don-t-hire-workers-from-india-china-obama-to-us-firms-297843?pfrom=home-business

Inflation moderates to 2-year low of 6.55% in January

New Delhi: Headline inflation fell to an over two-year low of 6.55 percent in January on cheaper food items, which may prompt the Reserve Bank to cut policy rates in the coming months.Headline inflation, as measured by the Wholesale Price Index (WPI), had stood at 7.47 percent in December 2011. It was 9.47 percent in January last year.
The latest numbers are the lowest since December 2009 when headline inflation was at 7.15 percent.
On inflation, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said that the rate of price rise was still not at an acceptable level and should fall further."I think it (inflation) should be further reduced since it is still not at acceptable level. I do hope (further) moderation will come," Mukherjee told reporters.

India's Dec industrial output growth slows sharply

NEW DELHI, Feb 10 (Reuters) - Indian industrial production growth slowed sharply in December, its slowest pace in two months, adding to pressure on the central bank to start cutting interest rates to help stimulate an economy that is headed for its slowest growth in three years.

Output from India's factories, mines and utilities increased a lower-than-expected 1.8 percent in the month from a year earlier, government data showed on Friday.

Analysts on average had expected a rise of 3.4 percent, a Reuters poll showed. The December figure compares with November's increase of 5.95 percent.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/10/india-economy-output-idUSL4E8DA19A20120210

Nokia to Cut 4,000 Jobs, Shift Phone Production to Asia.

Nokia Oyj, the world’s largest maker of mobile phones, will cut about 4,000 jobs in its factories in Hungary, Mexico and Finland to speed up the delivery of devices and get closer to suppliers.

Sebi to give MCA names of over 500 cos who violated CIS rules

Market regulator Sebi has decided to share with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs the names of over 500 companies, which have garnered money from investors in violation of its Collective Investment Scheme (CIS) rules.
Sebi would also give the names of the directors of such entities to the MCA, so that necessary actions can be taken to prevent these companies and persons from being associated with any new company, a senior official said.

Sebi may not relax norms for foreign investors in mutual funds

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) may not relax the ‘know your customer’ (KYC) norms for qualified foreign investors (QFIs) for investing in domestic mutual fund industry.

Last month, industry chief executives had requested for a relaxation after witnessing no inflows even after five months of the measures taken in August last year.

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/sebi-may-not-relax-norms-for-foreign-investors-in-mutual-funds/462730/